Unconscious Dreams
by fleshflash
Summary: Previously titled "Rocky Horror Dream Sequence"; related to inkbender's "Glee Project: Live Out Loud!" What the Glee Project characters have trouble expressing during their conscious hours is revealed under the influence of... anesthesia?


_Author's Note:_ this was originally written by **inkbender**, who wanted a sanitized account; thus **fleshflash** is the place where **inkbender** will publish all that dirty stuff :) This story is meant to be an accompaniment to **inkbender**'s story "Glee Project: Live Out Loud!", which is a second-season AU with Summer 2011's Glee Project contenders inserted within the story! It's a crazy-long story with plenty of confused, tangled love polygons, focusing mostly on the Glee Project characters for the first 20 chapters but trying to branch out into actual Glee characters for the last half. It isn't close to done yet either, but definitely swing on over there and read up - because some things in this story may not make so much sense without first reading "Glee Project: Live Out Loud!"__

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><p>"What was Mr. Schue thinking, bringing in a dentist to check for vocal health," Rachel mutters as she and Marissa troop into the dentist's office for a check up. "Teeth have almost no effect on the quality of your voice -though a perfect smile is incredibly important when pandering to adoring crowds."<p>

Marissa looks down at the shorter girl. "Why am I here again, if you're the one who hasn't been brushing her teeth at night?"

"I prefer to use mouthwash," Rachel drawls. "It's much more convenient and leaves my breath cool and refreshing."

"And apparently not clean enough."

"The liquid stings. I can't gargle that for 30 full seconds."

"Rachel Berry," a woman in scrubs calls, and Rachel follows her. When she notices that Marissa isn't following, she runs over and drags the redhead inside.

"I'm terribly afraid of drills and such," Rachel whispers as she clutches Marissa's hand. "My dads are out at a conference and nobody else from the Glee club wants to get close to me because they still believe me to be contagious."

Marissa glances down skeptically at the transformed, frightened little girl clinging desperately onto her hand. "You're still contagious... from what?"

"You had laryngitis last year, so I believe you should be immune to this disease."

"Alright, Rachel," the counselor's boyfriend greets warmly as the two walk into the room - though Marissa practically has to drag Rachel in. Rachel can't remember Ms. Pillsbury's boyfriend's name, so she just stands there silently until Marissa pushes her towards the chair. Rachel doesn't release her hand, so Marissa graciously sits in a chair nearby and allows her hand to be held.

"We had a lot of plaque and a possible cavity," the Possibly-Attractive-Adult-Boyfriend-Dentist declares to Rachel's left. If he notices Rachel's temporary paralysis and her inability to let go off Marissa's hand, he doesn't comment; he just goes around the dentist's chair the long way to reach his platter of tools. The metal instruments clatter as he picks them up, causing Rachel to wince. The Adult-Boyfriend-Dentist notices this and carefully sets his tray down. "You know what? Let's try a different approach," he says calmly. "I can give you a strong anesthesia while I work on your teeth. Would you like that?"

Rachel nods faintly. Marissa winces at the iron grip on her hand.

The ABD grins and nods at Marissa. "Just a minute," he assures, reaching for a gas mask and flipping on a switch. "She'll be gone in no time."

That's the last thing Rachel hears before everybody else appears to be talking underwater. The walls of the dentist's office fold in, threatening to collapse on top of her, but Marissa floats in front of her calmly. The next minute, the entire space has transformed itself into a sleek gray convertible, and Rachel is strapped into the backseat. Up front, Marissa sits in the passenger seat.

Rachel strains against the straps holding her down. "Marissa," she squeals. "Where-?"

Marissa jumps and turns around, her eyes widening in fright as she spots Rachel. "Wh-wh-who are you?"

Rachel's brow knits in confusion, but then the driver looks at Marissa and speaks. Rachel has never seen him before in her life, but she just _knows_ that his name is Cameron. His black-framed glasses, a plaid blue-and-black shirt unbuttoned to reveal a tight black shirt underneath and a pendant hung around his neck. "Who are you talking to?"

Marissa gapes at Rachel, her gaze darting between Cameron and Rachel in rapid succession. "You... you can't..."

Cameron looks in the backseat, straight through Rachel. "Is there someone—?" he begins to ask, but at that instant, a tire on their car explodes. The car careens wildly and embeds itself into a ditch; all three passengers are catapulted through the roof of the convertible into the stormy night sky. Marissa's flaming red hair streams behind her, enveloping her in a flaming comet; Cameron's glasses expand to shield his face from the wind. Rachel just falls helplessly, still restrained to a dentist's chair. Hours or seconds later, they land in front of a giant stone castle in the pouring rain. The huge wooden doors are cracked open, and party music drifts over them hauntingly.

_That was... strange_, Rachel thinks. _This must be a dream. I'm dreaming. How else would I be manifested as a spirit strapped to a dentist's chair?_

Marissa picks herself off of the ground and looks around for Cameron. "What are we going to do now?" she whimpers, as Cameron finds her and envelopes her in a big hug.

"That castle probably has a telephone," he reassures her. "Let's call a tow truck. Maybe Hannah can come pick us up."

Marissa nods, holding onto Cameron's hand. They walk unsteadily towards the castle entrance, and, not wanting to be left behind, Rachel follows silently. Now that Rachel's accepted that she might be living in a dream, it doesn't strike her as strange at all that she's still strapped to a dentist's chair and that something is moving around in her mouth and poking her teeth; she just wills her floating chair to move forward, and she enters the castle directly behind Cameron and Marissa.

A short munchkin is waiting inside the foyer—Matheus, dressed in a perfect-fit tuxedo. "Names?" he asks.

Cameron and Marissa glance at each other, and then Cameron speaks up. "I'm Cameron, and this is my girlfriend, Marissa. We crashed our car just a minute ago and we need to use your landline phone; there's no service out here."

Matheus looks down at his guestbook. "I don't see your names on the list... never mind, the master is having a party tonight, and I expect that he will be more hospitable than usual. This way, please." He strides confidently down a hallway, and Cameron follows, dragging Marissa behind him.

"He didn't say anything about providing a landline," Marissa whispers urgently. "What did he mean about '_more hospitable than usual'? _And this place gives me the creeps. We should get out of here."

"Where else are we going to find a phone?" Cameron argues. "We'll just call Hannah and then run like hell. Sound good?"

The party noises swell in volume as they approach another set of double doors. The unearthly music washes over them, swirling down their ears and infecting their minds with something not quite from this world. Cameron's eyes unfocus briefly, and when they snap back to reality, something in them has changed. Marissa struggles to stay aware, to stay in the present, to not slip into that change; she glances around and spots the ethereal form of Rachel hovering behind her. They make eye contact.

_Why are you following us again?_ Marissa asks in confusion. _Where did you come from? Who are you?_

Rachel is completely lost. _I have no idea. But I don't want to be alone._

_Neither do I. Stay close to me._

Rachel nods and hovers right behind Marissa. Marissa's resolve appears to be strengthened by Rachel's close proximity, resisting the alluring pull into oblivion. Only then does Marissa notice that there's something different about Cameron. "Cam?" she whispers softly as they stop in front of the double doors.

Cameron looks down at her, and the familiar, comforting twinkle in her eyes puts Marissa at ease. Mostly. "It's going to be alright," he grins. "We're just calling Hannah."

Matheus pushes open the doors, revealing a large ballroom with a throne and a jukebox at the far, far end. Behind the throne are large, clear windows that stretch from floor to ceiling, revealing ocean cliffs that Marissa never knew were there, especially since they're still in Ohio. There aren't any oceans in Ohio, are there?

_No, there shouldn't be,_ Rachel answers quickly, and Marissa jumps at the voice. She'd forgotten that the dentist's patient spirit had been hovering behind her. When she looks back at the windows, only woods stand there. Naked branches scraping against a full moon. She shivers, but then music washes over her and she's engulfed in the strange dance.

_It's just a jump to the left and then a step to the right.  
>Put your hands on your hips. You bring your knees in tight.<br>But it's the pelvic thrust that really drives you insane.  
>Let's do the time-warp again! Let's do the time-warp again.<em>

_Stop_, Rachel warns. _It's called a time-warp for a reason._

Marissa freezes. People bump into her as she shoves her way to Cameron. "Cam," she hisses, dragging him out of the line of dancers. He shudders and looks at her strangely. "Cam, we need to leave. There's no telephone here."

"These people are probably just from a different culture," Cameron says lackadaisically. "It's all very interesting. Maybe we can join in on their folk dancing...?"

"Strange culture, to include pelvic thrusts in folk dancing," she gripes as she pushes her boyfriend towards the double doors where Matheus still stands.

A foreign accent pounds loudly in her ears. "And where do you think you're going?"

Marissa whirls around to find somebody's nose two millimeters away from her face. She shrieks and stumbles backwards into Cameron's arms, who appears to be waking from some deep sleep. He blinks his eyes rapidly as if trying to clear a fog away. Marissa shakes him. "We gotta go," she whispers frantically, but he doesn't respond. Then she looks back at the guy who surprised her, and her heart drops.

Damian wears nothing but a pair of ultra-tight skinny jeans that outline every feature of his lower body; his upper body, on the other hand, is bared, well-defined, and full of hard lines, though his skin texture appears to be soft. A pair of yellow-tinted sunglasses and a yellow cap with its bill pulled to the side are perched on his head as he grins toothily at Marissa. "Party's just getting started!" he says in his strange, alluring accent, spreading his arms wide. The music swells around them once again as Damian struts out to the middle of the dance floor, then turns to face them.

_Don't get strung out by the way that I look; don't judge a book by its cover.  
>I'm not much of a man by the light of day but by night I'm one hell of a lover.<em>

He winks at Marissa and she shivers. Beside her, Cameron also shivers, but then he speaks up. Except he sings his next lines, and Marissa doesn't find it strange at all.

_I'm glad we caught you at home, could we use your phone? We're both in a bit of a hurry.  
>We'll just say where we are, then go back to the car. We don't want to be any worry.<em>

Damian walks right up to Cameron and puts a finger under Cameron's chin, tilting the taller boy's head upward to expose his neck.

_So you got caught with a flat, well, how about that? Well, baby, don't you panic.  
>By the light of the night when it all seems alright, I'll get you a satanic mechanic.<em>

Laughing manically, Damian jabs his finger into Cameron's chest and shoves him backward. Marissa steadies her boyfriend as Damian walks over to a small alcove that turns into an elevator. Trembling with fear, she and Cameron edge towards the door where Matheus stands, now with Sunshine by his side. Damian calls back at them over his shoulder.

_So come up to the lab and see what's on the slab. I see you shiver with antici... pation!  
>But maybe the rain isn't really to blame... So I'll remove the cause, but not the symptom.<em>

The elevator takes Damian up and out of sight. As soon as he disappears, Marissa shoves Cameron for the doors. He gets the clue and begins to run, but suddenly he flies backward and lands on his butt. Marissa slides to a stop; standing in their way are Matheus and Sunshine.

"You're two feet taller than they are," she whispers as she hauls him to his feet. "Isn't there something wrong with this picture?"

"He... he punched me," Cameron gasps, holding his stomach. "It's like I just ran into a brick wall."

Marissa looks up from Cameron to Matheus incredulously, only to find that there are now two small ninjas in full gear barring her way to the door. She looks over her shoulder and finds her familiar dentist's-patient-spirit hovering right there comfortingly. "Is this a dream?"

Rachel chews her lip thoughtfully. _Since you are a figment of my imagination, you're not supposed to realize that you're not real. Thus, in order to preserve the integrity of my sanity and the order of the universe, I conclude that this is not a dream. From __your__ perspective, this is your reality._

Marissa accepts this without question.

The ninja that is Sunshine, judging from the long black braids that fly behind her, suddenly darts for Marissa. A pair of sai swords appear from nowhere and prepare to slash Marissa's body. Matheus follows close behind, a six-foot katana held in front of him. They both utter war cries, and Marissa and Cameron respond with terrified screams.

A wind roars around Marissa, and when it settles, Sunshine stands ten feet away, her sai swords tucked in her belt.

"There's no telephone here," Marissa tells Cameron dully. He's lying on the floor, curled in a fetal position and completely naked except for a pair of boxers. And by the way... _Shit. _It's only then that Marissa notes that she's been stripped down to her bra and underwear as well. Immediately, she squats down and tries to make herself as small as possible—but, as with all naked dreams, nobody seems to notice her lack of clothing. They just stand around her, fake party expressions plastered on their faces - except for one tall partier, a guy with a ponytail of dreads, who eyes her in interest. Marissa reaches for Cameron's hand and clenches it tightly. "Cam?"

Cameron looks up at her and blushes at her attire; then he also seems to notice his lack of clothing. "What... how..." he grimaces.

"Ninjas," Marissa whispers hoarsely back, and Cameron nods in understanding.

Said ninja suddenly pokes Marissa's ass with her sai, prompting a loud yelp. "God! The hell," she shrieks, trying to bat away the offensive object before realizing that trying to knock away a sharp blade with her bare hands is not the best idea in the world. As if to prove her helplessness, the other sai jabs Cameron in the thigh, producing a scream higher in pitch than Marissa's.

Sunshine growls in a foreign language, motioning towards the waiting elevator.

_No_, Rachel says softly. _Don't._

"No!" Marissa yelps, backing up right onto the sharp point. She screams and leaps forward. "That... that's where that crazy guy just disappeared up to!"

Sunshine says something again, and Cameron glances at Marissa. "Maybe they don't speak English," he whispers, then turns to Sunshine and shakes his head in exaggerated motions. "Please, We Do Not Want To Go There! That Place Bad." In response, Matheus whips his katana downward; a second later, the waistband on Cameron's boxers splits halfway, sagging down to reveal a bit of Cameron's hip. He yelps and pulls it up. "Okay, we're going," he replies hurriedly, edging slowly towards the elevator. "Creepy ninjas with their stripping swords."

Marissa looks for openings, but everywhere she looks, Sunshine appears with her threatening sai swords. Matheus' katana grazes the bare skin of her back, and she joins Cameron and Rachel-the-dentist-chair-spirit in the elevator. Silently, Matheus slides a grate across the elevator, shutting them in.

Marissa finds Cameron's hand and clutches it tightly.

"We're going to die," she mutters. "We're going to die in our underwear."

Cameron squeezes her hand. "It's going to be alright."

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><p>Rachel jerks into consciousness as a particularly hard jab induces a spike of pain in her mouth. She yelps, except her mouth doesn't want to cooperate and she just emits a <em>bluh<em> noise.

Marissa squeezes her hand. "Are you going to be alright?" she asks softly.

Rachel blinks blearily, glancing at Marissa's body. "When did you put your clothes back on?"

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><p><em>Author's Note: Alright, so it's not quite M-rated yet. I don't like jumping straight into smutty stuff without background. This is fanfiction, after all - they're stories waiting to be told. And if they happen to have delicious hot stuff included as well, then all the better. But some context must be established first.<em>


End file.
